Sometimes you pick the school, and sometimes the school picks you.

Surely, most current high school seniors are lacking finger-nails right about now. In less than a month, admissions decisions from hundreds of colleges around the country and around the world will be delivered into mailboxes. I remember this time last year too vividly! I was scared to death, and all I could think was: “Please let me get lots of big, colorful envelopes!” As life has it, I didn’t get into my dream school, but I surely ended up at one. Perhaps you’ll have no problem and two months from now you’ll get a “Congratulations! You’ve been accepted into X college/university.” letter, but many of you will also have to face the terrifying small, standard-sized envelopes with short notes inside reading: “The admissions committee has reviewed applications for the 2012-2013 academic year, unfortunately…”

So, what do you do when the latter happens? Don’t ponder much on it, there’s nothing you could have done. But, if a year later you find yourself still craving to attend X university, then there is always the opportunity to apply as a transfer student. From experience, I can tell you that once I arrived here at the University of Rochester I fell in love, and would never consider transferring to my old “dream” school now. Just remember that there are some things you can’t control, you did all you could two months ago, when you clicked “submit” on those terrifying online buttons. Learn to let go, so better things can come along. I can assure you, they did for me. : )

Also, if you find yourself being accepted to a university you really want to go to but find yourself being offered mediocre financial aid to attend the institution, CALL THEM IMMEDIATELY. Inquire about any possible scholarships/jobs/grants you might be eligible for and explain your financial situation explicitly to your assigned financial aid counselor. Do this as SOON as you are accepted, as schools often disburse financial aid on a first-come first-serve basis.

Schools often determine financial aid for every student in a very systematic way that rarely takes into account extraneous factors (e.g. sending money to your family back home in X country) that may deeply affect your family finances, so be sure to explain your situation well. Most schools will be glad to work with you in order to make it possible for you to attend the institution; after all…they did accept you because they want you there!

Good luck to you all, and remember…you will end up where you belong to be!